Tucked inside Washington State’s newly approved $78 billion budget for 2025-2026 is a historic move: For the first time, the state will fund a study to explore reparations for the descendants of enslaved people. Signed into law by Gov. Bob Ferguson in May, the measure gives Washington the authority to examine how it might address the lasting impacts of slavery—marking a major shift in the state’s approach to racial justice.
According to The Seattle Times, the initial funding for the study is light, in comparison to the total of the budget, only costing Washington state $300,000 to become the third state in the country to officially study reparations in an effort to explore any possible and potential remedies.
Some, like Sheley Secrest, the director of the Washington state branch of the NAACP, anticipate that the actual cost is going to exceed the state’s anticipated price tag. Secrest estimates that the true cost of the state’s reparations commission is approximately $1.5 million.
Source: Washington State To Study Reparations For First Time In Its History
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